something I don't get

Here in NP, the preferred choice of fixing very potholey roads seems to be to cover them with a layer of tar and then a thick layer of gravel. Maybe there are other stages coming later, but there are no signs up, either to prohibit driving on the gravel/tar combo, nor to warn us about the enhanced likelihood of skidding, nor to reassure us that the condition is temporary. This is kind of bad in cars, although not awful. It is very bad for bikes. As as the cars drive over the gravel, the excess gets pitched to the side, which is, of course where we bikers (I glory in that phrase) hang. It's bumpy, unpredictable, tire-popping, uncomfortable, and it makes me have to ride with my hands on the handlebars, which I resent. I hope someone somewhere, in cowboy boots, has some kind of grand plan that's merely in the midst of unfolding, despite evidence to the contrary. I hope so.

. . .